The News Minute | January 12, 2015 | 02.20 pm IST
A beauty contest for Muslims and the grounds for selection were a tad different compared to regular Western beauty patents.
The World Muslimah Award was held last Friday in Indonesia, and with a doctor and a computer scientist amongst the 18 finalists at the event, this contest judged them not only on their appearance but also their ability to recite the Koran and their views on Islam in the modern world, reported France24.
The winner of this year’s awards went to a 25 year-old computer scientist from Tunisia, Fatma Ben Guefrache who won a gold watch, a gold dinar and a mini pilgrimage to Mecca.
The World Muslimah Award first drew world-wide attention in 2013 when it was held as a peaceful protest to Miss World being held around the same time, said the report.
Recently, Miss World removed its biking round but it was still called a ‘whore contest’ by Islamic radicals, said the report.
The Muslimah pageant has not been without issues. Seven finalists droped out with many others finding difficulties in obtaining visas to the country.
Interestingly, the Indian contestant Nazreen who hails from Meerut, a runner up at the finale had to miss her original flight to attend the event after being questioned by officials suspicious of a woman travelling alone with a headscarf, said the report.
Another interesting fact is that the finale was held against the backdrop of Prambanan , a nigh century complex of Hindu temples on Java island indicating a conscious decision of acceptance of other religions, said organisers according to the report